The Second Fake Death of Eddie Campbell & The Fate of the Artist

by Eddie Campbell

Eddie Campbell is not himself. But these days, who is? It’s meta-fictional mystery and mischief as the award-winning artist of From Hell sets out to find his own imposter.
Plus, on the a deluxe new presentation of The Fate of the Artist , Eddie Campbell’s classic work of graphic meta-memoir!

SIDE The Second Fake Death of Eddie Campbell , by Eddie Campbell, is a spiritual sequel to his acclaimed graphic novel The Fate of the Artist , in which the author was missing from his own autobiography. Many years later, during an endless Covid lockdown in which everybody wears a mask and needs a haircut, Eddie’s wife is certain that he has been supplanted by an imposter. She hires a detective, the square-jawed Royler Boom, to solve the mystery. What follows — interspersed with Campbell’s trademark wry anecdotes, dreams, parodic pastiches, and pandemic peccadilloes — is a thrilling investigation that builds to a car chase and a violent conclusion. The author cunningly passes this off as another piece of autobiography.

SIDE The Fate of the Artist : In an autobiography, the author and the subject are the same person… but now they’ve both gone missing. The Fate of the Artist is a complex weaving of different strains of invention including a mock prose detective story, an imaginary Sunday comic strip, a mock fumetti-style interview with the author's daughter, intertwined with Campbell's beloved brand of autobiographical comic storytelling. In this deluxe reissue of a groundbreaking book, the award-winning cartoonist of From Hell and Alec presents a complex, caustic, and fiendishly clever meditation on the lonely life of the artist and the busy life that swirls around him.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Graphic Novels Comics, Memoir

192 pages, Hardcover

Published July 11, 2023

About the author

Eddie Campbell is a British comics artist and cartoonist whose work has shaped the evolution of modern graphic storytelling. He is widely known as the illustrator and publisher of From Hell, his long collaboration with Alan Moore that reimagines the Jack the Ripper case through an ambitious and meticulously researched narrative. Campbell is also the creator of the long-running semi-autobiographical Alec series, later collected in Alec: The Years Have Pants, and the satirical adventure cycle Bacchus, which follows a handful of Greek gods who have wandered into the contemporary world. His scratchy pen-and-ink technique draws on impressionist influences and early masters of expressive line art, while his writing blends humor, candor, and literary ambition in a manner that critics have compared to Jack Kerouac and Henry Miller.
Campbell began developing autobiographical comics in the late 1970s before expanding the Alec stories throughout the following decades, publishing early instalments through small press networks in London and later with major independent publishers. After moving to Australia in the mid-1980s, he continued to produce both Alec and Bacchus stories while contributing to a range of international anthologies. His partnership with Moore on From Hell, initially serialised in the anthology Taboo, became one of the most acclaimed graphic novels of its era and further cemented his reputation for grounded, character-driven illustration.
Across a varied career Campbell has worked as a creator, editor, publisher, and occasional court illustrator. His contributions to comics have earned him numerous industry awards, including the Eisner Award, the Harvey Award, the Ignatz Award, the Eagle Award, and the UK Comic Art Award. He continues to produce new work while maintaining a strong presence in both literary and comics circles.

Reviews

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 2 out of 5]

Whimsical, random, odd, off-kilter, two "fake death" stories by the legendary artist on From Hell and other comics, the first is brand new, a Covid story, The Second Fake Death of Eddie Campbell; in other words a man gone mad in isolation with his wife Audrey (the acclaimed artist/author Niffenegger, who plays straight woman/wife to his rando bizarreness).
Thrown in for good measure (or comparison) is the first Fake Death Eddie story, The Fate of the Artist (2006), which is even more elliptical and less amusing. I note that I gave it 4 stars and did not review it. I had not really remembered it when I read it this time. I liked the most recent one better for the Audrey sidekick banter and the Covid isolation joking. In that one there's failed--begun, never got off the ground--comics started during Covid, so you get a sense of wasted time, spinning wheels, brain fog, during lockdown, something we can all relate to.

Some sorta Brit tongue-in-cheek dead-pan humor I struggled to catch up to; or is it just not all that funny to me? But I read the whole thing. Ephemera, quirky bits, tap dancing, pages of non-cartooning with all text, little cartoon inserts throughout. This review attempts to somewhat match the staccato pace and structure of the two texts and the fillers. Ta!

Thanks for the early look to Netgalley and the author (who sez to me: thanks for nutttin', pal!), and Top Shelf, who create a lovely product here. This is how I really feel about the book, though it may be informed by the after-effects of my own Covid isolation. As in: Huh?

[Peacegal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Graphic novels set during the Covid pandemic are becoming a genre in and of themselves. This comic was quite random--with some humorous/interesting content, and some that didn't hold my attention at all. Kudos to the author for remembering how many of us tried to add a dash of whimsy to the grim situation by wearing funny or cute-patterned masks.

[Jin · Rating 3 out of 5]

---English Version---
Note:I received a digital review copy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

~Plot~
SIDE A (The Second Fake Death of Eddie Campbell): is a spiritual sequel to his acclaimed graphic novel The Fate of the Artist. Many years later, during an endless Covid lockdown in which everybody wears a mask and needs a haircut, Eddie’s wife is certain that he has been supplanted by an imposter. She hires a detective, the square-jawed Royler Boom, to solve the mystery. What follows — interspersed with Campbell’s trademark wry anecdotes, dreams, parodic pastiches, and pandemic peccadilloes

SIDE B (The Fate of the Artist): In an autobiography, the author and the subject are the same person… but now they’ve both gone missing. The Fate of the Artist is a complex weaving of different strains of invention including a mock prose detective story, an imaginary Sunday comic strip, a mock fumetti-style interview with the author’s daughter, intertwined with Campbell’s beloved brand of autobiographical comic storytelling. In this deluxe reissue of a award-winning cartoonist.

~Review~
It's a cerebral, weird, and challenging experience, the two sides are really experimental, so it may not be for everyone. The aesthetic use a combination of comics, photos, text, and illustration and the narrative is aware of that. It captures the absurdity of the pandemic period on the first side and the deconstruction of the life of the artist on the second. I’d recommend this graphic novel to people who love over-the-top experimental comics and enjoy creative writing.

~Other Information~
Author: Eddie Campbell
Publisher: Top Shelf Productions
Page Count: 192 pages

~Rating~
Overall Rating:★★★½

~Link~
Buy on Amazon | Buy on Penguin Random House


---Italian Version---
Nota:Ho ricevuto una copia gratuita da NetGalley in cambio di una recensione onesta.

~Trama~
SIDE A (“The Second Fake Death of Eddie Campbell”): è un sequel spirituale della sua acclamata graphic novel “The Fate of the Artist”. Molti anni dopo, durante un interminabile lockdown di Covid in cui tutti indossano una maschera e hanno bisogno di un taglio di capelli, la moglie di Eddie è certa che sia stato sostituito da un impostore.Assume un detective, Royler Boom (detto mascella squadrata), per risolvere il mistero. Quello che segue - intervallato dagli aneddoti ironici, dai sogni, da parodie tipici di Campbell e da peccatucci pandemici.

SIDE B (“The Fate of the Artist”):In un'autobiografia, l'autore e il soggetto sono la stessa persona... ma ora sono scomparsi entrambi. The Fate of the Artist è un complesso intreccio di diversi ceppi di invenzione tra cui un finto romanzo poliziesco in prosa, un immaginario fumetto della domenica, una finta intervista con la figlia dell'autore, si intrecciano con l'amato marchio di narrazione a fumetti autobiografica di Campbell. In questa ristampa deluxe di un libro di un autore pluripremiato.

~Recensione~
È un'esperienza cerebrale, strana e stimolante, le due parti sono davvero sperimentali, quindi potrebbe non essere per tutti. L'estetica utilizza una combinazione di fumetti, foto, testo e illustrazioni e la narrazione ne è consapevole. Cattura l'assurdità del periodo della pandemia in un lato e la decostruzione della vita dell'artista nell'altro. Consiglierei questa graphic novel a chi ama i fumetti sperimentali esagerati e ama la scrittura creativa.

~Altre informazioni~
Autore: Eddie Campbell
Editore: Top Shelf Productions
Numero Pagine: 192 pagine

~Valutazione~
Voto:★★★½

~Link utili~
Compra su Amazon (in inglese)

[Holly Cruise]

The edition I got offered up two strange autobiographies for the price of one: The Fate Of The Artist and The Second Fake Death Of Eddie Campbell. Both are patchwork pieces, stitching graphic novel style comics, Sunday funnies style comics, photo comics, text, and a few more things on top. TFOTA is more difficult to get into, its component parts a bit more diffuse and hard to keep a grasp of, while TSFDOEC is a little more linear. Only a little, mind.

Not that it's impossible and unreadable. In fact, with both volumes I found it initially a little hard to get hooked, but both did eventually lure me in with the odd digressions and absurdist humour. The recurrent motif in TSFDOEC of him locking himself out of his house without his trousers and having to call his daughter actually had me cackling by the end. The various art styles throughout are also all really nicely done, which makes sense as Campbell is a big comics name, the artist for From Hell.

[Todd Glaeser · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this via Hoopla panel by panel. The art is incredible and the story top level E.C.
I’ll be looking for this in San Diego next week!

[Tamara Evans · Rating 2 out of 5]

“The Fate of the Artist” is a graphic novel focusing on finding of missing graphic novelist Eddie Campbell.

The graphic novel consists of a foreword, two parts, and an afterword.

In the foreword, Campbell tells the reader that while “The Fate of the Artist” was intended to be fiction, it quickly turned into a more autobiographical novel when Campbell decided to make himself the subject of the graphic novel by faking his own death and murder. Following the foreword is a note that this graphic novel is an autobiographical novel with typographical anomalies in which the author does not appear as himself and a drawing of a man acting as his stand in throughout the graphic novel.

In the first part of the graphic novel, the artist has gone missing and instead of a ransom note, a crude drawing is left behind. When the narrator (a detective) questions to the artist’s daughter and wife, it is stated that the identity of the missing artist is Eddie Campbell. As part one progresses, Campbell uses different ways to tell his story including comic strips called “Angry Cook,” “Honeybee,” Otherwise,” and “Theatricals.”. and an interview with his daughter in which she shares that her father agreed to do a film and as such. an actor named Siegrist is standing in for Campbell.

As part one progresses, the reader learns more about Campbell’s including his habit of storing his art in black trash bags, leaving his family a house with windows that don’t close in winter and don’t open in summer, and has left a mysterious “fridge towel” to catch water that’s been leaking from their fridge for months. Part one end with a film scene involving Siegrist and an actress leading to a hospital visit and stitches.

Prior to part two, there is an interlude begins by showing a newspaper with the headline “Artist Still Missing Kidnapping Feared” followed by four pages of comic strips.

The second part begins with the detective continuing to locate Campbell and visits his accountant then makes an interesting comment regarding a movie in which a struggling artist staged his own death in order to raise the prices of his work. After the detective questions other people in Campbell’s life, his body is eventually found dead and dead and double-bagged in the graphic novel section of the State Reference Library. While the detective leaves Campbell’s wife at the library to figure out how Campbell was able to commit suicide, put himself in two bags, then seal them with a little metal twisty on the outside, the detective has been able to figure out Campbell’s killer. The second part ends with Campbell’s stand in Richard Siegrist being asked for an autograph then falling off a road.

In the afterword, Campbell explains how this graphic novel was meant to be fiction and apologizing for the putting words into the mouths of Ann his wife at the time, his daughter Hayley, and a past book designer he worked with Mick Evans that they would not have spoken in real life. Likewise, Campbell writes of causing annoyance to his friends by using their likeness as character in his but getting an unexpected surprise from a friend in the previous version of the graphic novel after it was published but has corrected in this version. Campbell ends the graphic novel by presenting drawings of various authors and blog pages from 2006.

After finishing this graphic novel, I noticed that there was a second graphic novel upside called “The Second Fake Death of Eddie Campbell,” which focuses of Eddie Campbell navigating the world during the Covid-19 pandemic while his wife Audrey believes that he is an impostor. As the graphic novel progresses, Audrey hires a private detective Royler Boom and with his assistant Fizz Waters, they discover that during the past four years, Campbell and Siegrist changed places which went undetected due to the global pandemic. Following Boom and Waters finding Campbell, he ends up having an accident leaving him with amnesia, then dying and Audrey being aware that she is living with Siegrist as her husband. This graphic novel ends with Campbell providing an afterword discussing his creation process and “The Empty Nesters,” which is what Campbell calls “the rude thing he ever conceived.

As I finished both graphic novels, I enjoyed the creative techniques Campbell uses to present his story which is entertaining, humorous but also disorienting at times.

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

My thanks to both NetGalley and the publisher IDW Publishing, Top Shelf Productions for an advanced copy of this autobiographical graphic novel, with a hint of fiction, a bit of oddness.

Considering the state of the world, and especially the comic industry I am surprised that more creators and illustrators are not faking their deaths and going off the grid. Comics have deadlines, no money, artificial intelligence stealing work, Marvel movies sucking up all the air, and making movie screens darker and darker literally with their films. Thankfully Eddie Campbell is more of a storyteller than a doer and has only thought of escape from it all in cartoon form. Actually he has thought of it twice, fifteen years earlier and now post- pandemic. The Second Fake Death of Eddie Campbell & The Fate of the Artist is comprised of two stories, the obvious The Second Fake Death of Eddie Campbell being the second and The Fate of the Artist being the earlier work, told in a new updated deluxe edition.

The stories are presented in a flip style book with a Side A and Side B. The Second Fake Death of Eddie Campbell deals with the artist, Eddie Campbell as a locked-down man. Set during the Pandemic with COVID and Karens running around Campbell deals with long hair, masks, bad jokes, and not being able to get much in the way of work done. Eddie's wife becomes certain that he has been replaced with a double, and hires a B-Movie looking detective, Royce Bloom, to find out what is going on, and if the truth is what the artist says it is. Along the way Campbell tries to solve his own mystery of who wrote an early comic strip from 100 years ago, and how to socialize after being trapped inside for long on. And he seems to lose his pants, a lot. The Fate of the Artist is from 15 years earlier a story told about a missing artist Eddie Campbell told in interviews with family, friends and shown in a variety of different art styles.

The story, well both stories are autobiographical, with COVID tales, discussions about projects lost, forgotten or suddenly unimportant. Songs, art, book titles are mentioned, fakes newspaper strips are told. For some this sounds uninteresting, but for many this is great fun, with easter eggs hidden all over, lots of mentions from past works, and just an odd story that is different from what one sees, told well and with a lot of feeling. The art changes, from cartoony, to early newspaper strip, to hyper realistic even sort of that fotoplay look that publishers used to make with film stories. There is a realism, even when things get fantastic. Many scenes stick out, my favorite being an interview that his daughter gives about Campbell being missing that is just funny, and told and presented so well. I wonder about the contribution of certain people. His daughter Hayley Campbell is a writer, whose book All the Living, All the Dead is worth a read, and I wonder if he let her write her scenes. It is touches like this that really make the work resound.

For fans of Eddie Campbell's work this will be a big hit. For people who like autofiction, and where it can go, they should try it, and will probably enjoy. And for people who like their comics slightly off, this would be a perfect gift to buy for oneself.

[Madison · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this text quite enjoyable. It’s brimming with irony and references to music, art, and literature. The illustration style of both “features” reminds me of Zines from the 1990s. It’s modernized and presented in full color, but otherwise matches zines in tone and style. I found the blend of photos, found objects, and styles of paper throughout the novels very interesting to consider. And the narrative is aware of the way it’s presented—at one point, the main character’s wife points out that he’s been using photos instead of illustrating everything from scratch.

As a commentary on life during the pandemic, I think this is one of the most poignant texts I’ve seen. It utterly captures the absurdity of that time. From the caricature of Karen to the speculation about masks, the author documents experiences that many of us shared as we experienced the development of COVID-19.

I’d recommend this graphic novel to anyone studying creative writing or graphic design. Anyone looking to understand the emotions and experiences of people during the pandemic would find this text interesting.

[Mark Schlatter · Rating 2 out of 5]

TLDR: I'm glad I did not buy this (but just read it through my library).

This is a sequel to The Fate of the Artist, not just thematically but logistically --- there's a major plot point that will make much more sense if you have read the previous book. But I liked that book more, and I didn't like it that much. A major issue is the artwork, much of which is digital and thus is missing the scratchiness that I love in prime Campbell pieces. (I will admit, however, to liking some of the rawness shown; the grungy depictions of the Karen brought me to the Bacchus days.)

My bigger problem is the overall lack of direction. Like the previous book, this is a combination of private detective motifs, Eddie's domestic life, and takeoffs of classic cartoons, but there's also a strong dose of pandemic culture thrown in. And I didn't really see a thread tying it all together (besides a quite funny running gag about a lack of trousers).

If you adored The Fate of the Artist, you should read this. Otherwise, I think it's worth skipping.

[Don Flynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read The King Canute Crowd years ago and loved it. Had never got around to The Fate of the Artist until now. Snatches of autobiography along with ephemera about historical figures. Glimpses of Campbell's sketchbook. It's a summation of the artist's relationship to his craft, an attempt to come to terms. The second, more recent The Second Fake Death of Eddie Campbell chronicles the author's travails during covid lockdown, and his struggle to produce new work.

Campbell is one of those artists who have no modern counterpart. Their work is so original, we may never see his like again. But at least we have his terrific books still in print for new readers. I hope they find and enjoy them.

[Jefferson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unfortunately, the trouble with most autobiographical cartoonists is that (if they're successful) they eventually reach a point where the only time they leave the house is to go to comic book conventions, an experience that isn't nearly as interesting as it seems like it could be. Then add the Covid lockdown, and we find that Mr. Campbell's lockdown experience was the same as everyone else's: pretty boring and not really worth commenting on. Additionally, switching to drawing digitally hasn't done him any favors, the artwork veers between flat and overproduced. Not Eddie Campbell's best work.

[Rick Ray · Rating 1 out of 5]

As a fairly big Eddie Campbell fan, this was fairly disappointing overall. Campbell's collection of pandemic era stories carry some whimsy and off-beat musings that work some of the times, but mostly read as kind of grating and dry. I'm usually a fan of Brit humor, but something about the writing felt tired. Campbell approaches this collection using a more mixed media approach than his previous books, but overall I can't say this experimentation moved me much.

[MariNaomi]

experimental, absurdist, creative, difficult and rewarding. these books have a similar cadence to binge watching monty python or kids in the hall: in-jokes that get zanier with repetition. on first read i was somewhat confused and occasionally amused. on the second read i got it more, and enjoyed the many easter eggs. i appreciate how ambitious this was, how carefully bizarre. this is my favorite of his works i've read so far.

[Greg L Goldstein · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun, creative, unconventional (to say the least) and very meta --- this combines two graphic novels into one package. (I think I liked the "sequel" more than the original, but I enjoyed both.)

Despite the general appreciation and accolades, Campbell (From Hell, Bacchus) remains an underrated talent.

[sinag · Rating 2 out of 5]

2/5 stars!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The art style is personally not for me, as well as the humor, thus, not really hitting the mark for me.

[Benji Tomlinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's a shame that you have to give a star rating in order to write a review here. Sometimes something just confounds you. This gets 5 stars for that. I failed to understand the appeal, the humor or the ideas behind this. I think that may have been the point. So in that way it is a work of genius.

[Neil Carey · Rating 5 out of 5]

A marvelous bargain: the return of a hilarious classic which looks at how our loved ones see us, and the man gave the world Alec Macgarry turning his eye to our shared descent into barbarism

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

Alec oops.

[Peter Hollo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eddie Campbell is an hilarious man, even when computer lettered.

[Lee Wochner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolutely hilarious if you just give yourself over to it.

[Adam Witt · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Fate of The Artist is one of my favorite graphic novels of all time. Second Fake Death is a worthy, if clumsy follow-up.

[Rory Toohey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sure, it doesn't all work or make sense, but what doesn't work is still often interesting.

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun

[Dair · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting read. The newer material is a bit uneven but the reprint of the original is great.

[Julie Kirby · Rating 2 out of 5]

This guy sucks.

[Morgan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I accessed a digital review copy of this book from the publisher.
The book contained a collection of comics, some of which were interconnected. The humor and art were not to my taste, but not bad. If you are a fan of the author, then this book is for you.